EU fines Temu 200 million euros over illegal product sales

The European Commission has imposed a 200 million euro fine on the e-commerce platform Temu. The penalty stems from the platform's failure to adequately identify and evaluate the systemic risks associated with selling illegal products. The Commission highlighted that consumers in the EU are highly likely to encounter such illicit items on Temu.

An investigation found that Temu's risk assessment for 2024 did not meet the standards required by the Digital Services Act (DSA). During secret shopping tests, a significant portion of selected chargers failed basic safety tests. Additionally, many baby toys presented moderate to high safety risks, exceeding chemical limits or posing choking hazards due to detachable parts.

Temu's recommendation systems and influencer-driven product promotion programs were also criticized for not sufficiently assessing the spread of illegal goods. The DSA mandates that very large online platforms meticulously evaluate and mitigate systemic risks linked to their services. Temu is required to present a plan to correct these violations by August 28, 2026. Failure to comply could result in periodic fines, underscoring the EU's strict enforcement of digital platform regulations.